The present invention relates generally to tactile human-computer interface devices, and more specifically to enhancing vibration feedback in such interface devices.
Computer devices are widely used for activities such as playing games. Currently, popular gaming computer devices include game consoles connected to a home television set, such as the Nintendo® 64 from Nintendo Corp., the Playstation® from Sony Corp., the X-box from Microsoft Corp., and the Dreamcast™ from Sega Corp. Gaming computer devices also include personal computers, such as Windows PCs, Macintosh computers, and others. Also, portable computer devices are often used for entertainment purposes, such as Game Boy® from Nintendo, personal digital assistants such as PalmPilot® from Palm Computing, and laptop computers. These devices can be used for other activities as well.
Users of computer devices typically interact with a game or other application program using an interface device connected to the host computer (e.g. game console). Such interface devices may include joysticks, gamepads, knobs, mice, trackballs, styluses, steering wheels, or other devices. A user moves a user manipulatable object (manipulandum), such as a joystick, wheel, mouse, button, dial, or other object, which is sensed by the host computer and used to manipulate a graphical environment displayed by the host computer. Recently, haptic feedback has become available in interface devices, where the host computer and/or a processor on the interface device controls one or more motors to output forces to the user. These forces are correlated with events or objects in the graphical environment to further immerse the user in the gaming experience or interface task. Herein, the term “haptic feedback” is intended to include both tactile feedback (forces transmitted to user skin surfaces) and kinesthetic feedback (forces provided in degree(s) of freedom of motion of the manipulandum).
In some markets such as the game console market, products are typically produced in high volume and low cost. In these markets, haptic feedback interface devices have been typically limited to simpler embodiments that provide more limited forms of haptic feedback, such as tactile inertial feedback. Existing haptic feedback “gamepad” controllers (or add-on hardware for gamepad controllers) that are used to interface with games running on game consoles include the Dual Shock™ from Sony Corp., the Rumble Pak™ from Nintendo Corp., and the Jump Pack from Sega Corp, as well as other types of handheld controllers such as the MadCatz Dual Force Racing Wheel. These devices are inertial tactile feedback controllers which employ one or more motors to shake the housing of the controller and thus provide output sensations, such as vibrations, to the user which are correlated to game events and interactions. Typically, an eccentric rotating mass (ERM) motor, i.e., pager motor, is used to generate sensations on the controller and thus to the user. The motor is rigidly coupled to the controller housing and provides a inertial mass on a rotating shaft offset from the axis of rotation, so that when the shaft is rotated, the inertial forces from the mass rock the motor and the gamepad housing back and forth. Additional motors are used to provide stronger forces or to output force sensations of different frequencies or magnitudes.
One problem with such existing tactile controllers is that they can provide output inertial forces only in the general directions (“swirl”) of the rotating mass. The sensations thus feel to the user as if they are not output in any particular direction, but are simply output on the housing of the device. However, many events in games and other computer-implemented environments are direction-based. For example, in a driving game, the user may be driving a vehicle that impacts a side wall, or gets impacted by another vehicle. These events should cause directional forces on the interface device to allow the user a more realistic simulation of the event; thus if the user's car is impacted on the left, a force should be output on the device in the corresponding direction. However, the haptic inertial devices currently available do not allow such directional output of inertial forces.